Miami Airport Workers Strike For Health Care

Jose Ferrer, fore, marches to the beat of a Junkanoo band to kick off his and others' strike against Ultra Aviation.

Wilson Sayre
/ WLRN

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Click here to listen to the sounds of the rally that kicked off the strike in this audio version of the story.

More than 100 workers at Miami International Airport are striking for 24 hours.

Subcontractors tasked with handling baggage, curbside check-in and pushing wheelchairs for various airlines are walking off the job in protest of what they say are violations of the Miami-Dade County living-wage ordinance.

But part-time employees of Ultra Aviation Services say the health benefits they are automatically enrolled in are far below minimum standards. They say it’s not a real plan with a network and deductible, and that trips to the hospital have cost workers thousands of dollars.

Iris Castro and Jose Ferrer both walked off the job at Ultra Aviation.

Credit Wilson Sayre / WLRN

“I don’t have money for that,” says Iris Castro, who works security for Ultra.

She’s been with the company for three years and says she doesn’t go to the doctor because she can’t afford to pay out of pocket what her insurance won’t pay for.

“That’s the reason we fight. We need [real health insurance]. They don’t care how I’m feeling so that’s the reason why I stay here, protesting.”

Castro and more than 100 of her colleagues chose not to show up for work starting at noon Thursday and say they will return at the same time Friday.

Since the beginning of this push, Ultra has maintained it is fully compliant with the county’s living-wage ordinance.

“We certainly respect the First Amendment right of each of those employees to express their views,” said Miguel de Grandy, who represents Ultra.

He says while part-time workers are offered a health plan that is less comprehensive than that offered to full-time workers, it still meets minimum standards outlined in the Affordable Care act.

“Is the [part-time] plan as good as a full-time plan? No. Are they paying the same rate as a full-time plan? No,” says de Grandy, explaining the reason for the difference in plans.

Helene O'Brien speaks at a rally against Ultra Aviation.

Credit Wilson Sayre / WLRN

Additionally, he points to a provision in the living-wage ordinance that references a state statute that was repealed in 2015.

County officials are continuing to look into whether Ultra is in violation, but have yet to make a determination since workers first lodged their complaints in April. The department in charge of living-wage ordinance compliance has asked Ultra for payroll documents, with a July 12 deadline.

If it does find Ultra in violation of the living-wage ordinance, the workers would be entitled to at least back pay for their reduced wages.

When most of us think of Miami International Airport, we don't think of scorpions, sloths, sharks or spiders.

But it turns out the airport is kind of a zoo. Because in addition to being one of the United States' busiest passenger airports, MIA is one of the busiest American airports for importing animals and animal products.